Name: Still Life With Mushrooms And Courgettes
Brand: Julian Opie
Rating: 5 (236 reviews)

Track auction value trend

The value of Julian Opie's Still Life With Mushrooms And Courgettes (signed) is estimated to be worth between £1,100 and £1,650. This digital print artwork, created in 2001, has an auction history of five total sales since its entry to the market in September 2011. There have been no sales in the last 12 months or the last five years. The edition size of this artwork is limited to 40.

Meaning & Analysis

Rendered in the style of a 17th century Dutch still life painting, Still Life With Mushrooms And Courgettes is a digital print from Julian Opie’s Still Life series from 2001. The print shows an image of three courgettes and three mushrooms, randomly assembled in a composition against a stark, black backdrop.

Working within the established art historical tradition of still life painting, Opie takes the opportunity in Still Life With Mushrooms And Courgettes to use this subject as a study of colour and tone and explore a more realistic artistic style. Reducing light and shadow into simplified shapes of block colour, this composition toes the line between tradition and contemporaneity in its clever blend of subject matter and style.

Engaging with traditional compositional compositions, this print presents a decidedly modern version of the art historical genre. The vegetables are closely cut around with clean lines so as to isolate them from the empty flattened backdrop, with no shadow or light to contextualise the objects in their surroundings. Furthermore, Opie’s use of bright, saturated colour and his emphasis on using computer technology, works to bring this scene into the context of a 21st century art world.